Now that I’m back from my recent trip, I wanted to highlight a project I’ve been working on. As many of you know, I helped put together a project with Styleforum and Panta late last year for a made-to-order run of Panta’s popular ties. A similar event is up on Massdrop now, this time with the #menswear favorite Epaulet. […]

On my recent trip to Europe I was able to stop by not one, but TWO Carmina storefronts – one in Barcelona, the other in Paris. The Spanish footwear brand has exploded in popularity over the past few years, so I’ve been curious to see more of their product line in person for a while. The company has […]

Allen Edmonds is a footwear company that evokes a lot of polarizing feelings from menswear folks. There are many who feel that AE offers impressive quality and solid designs at the entry level price of fine footwear, and they’d be right. There are others who feel that Allen Edmonds shoe designs tend to miss the […]

Shell cordovan – the ever-popular material made from a horse’s rear – is exceptional stuff. It’s hard-wearing, has a wonderfully rich color, is naturally water-resistant and crease-resistant, and just looks damn good. It’s no wonder that the stuff is so popular among the shoe aficionados of the world. There are two major problems with shell, […]

It seems that one of the favorite pastimes of menswear bloggers (myself included) is creating lists of “essentials.” It’s definitely a fun exercise, and helps you really think about what constitutes a necessary piece of clothing. For those types of items, I’ve found that it can be worth saving up a bit more to buy […]

I have often used this blog as a platform to complain about San Francisco’s mild weather; it does feel a bit cruel to do that while the rest of the country has had a winter of epic proportions, but it’s true that living in a place that is 65 degrees almost every day can become […]

Like many people that read this blog, one of my favorite pastimes is researching an item of clothing in search of the “perfect one” – the piece that will be the ultimate addition to my wardrobe. I do this in part because I try to keep my wardrobe relatively simple and utilitarian, but also because […]

Menswear nerds like myself seem to enjoy talking about “essential” items, and footwear in particular – much has been written about the necessity of the black captoe, the brown brogue, the penny loafer, the suede chukka, and so forth. Although items like these are certainly useful, there are also things that are actually essential (not […]

Although I feel that full-grain calfskin shoes should probably be the cornerstone of a small shoe wardrobe like mine, I can’t seem to keep myself from gravitating towards suede. Some men seem overly concerned that suede is difficult to maintain or is “out of style” for some strange reason, but I have never had an […]

The leaves are starting to change colors (or so I’m told), everyone’s talking about pumpkin spice lattes, and the dollar is gaining ground on the euro. When put together, these signs can only mean one thing – it’s time to grab some autumnal footwear. The chukka boot is an incredibly versatile shoe and is perfectly […]

About the Author

Ian Anderson is a menswear buyer and style blogger based in San Francisco. He started From Squalor to Baller in 2012 as a resource for men trying to understand and excel in the confusing world of business casual attire.